Our Mission

Welcome to the New England Gang School.

The goal of the New England Gang School is to be the most legitimate training ground for police officers who are transitioning into, applying into, or seeking professional insight into, plainclothes police work. It has been designed specifically for plainclothes, anti-crime, or gang unit officers, as well as detectives and supervisors, who wish to initiate or increase their knowledge of gangs; through the realistic and local lens of how they actually exist. As you well know, the makeup of our gangs, and our gang violence problem, is dissimilar to that of Miami, Baltimore, Arizona, and especially Los Angeles. And so our focus is to address the gang trends as they appear here, locally, in New England; and to utilize working street cops who can describe the actual methods currently being used to recognize them and investigate them. Our information is not franchised, nor has it been pulled from the internet. In contrast, the training has been developed through experience and ideas.

We present our training with a focus on professionalism, honor, fairness, and preparation for court. And although the training focuses on gangs, it is really about recognizing deception and surreptitious behavior by anyone. The same actions that indicate a firearm, may, in your town, indicate a hidden graffiti can. And the same actions that suggest that someone is lying about a warrant are the same identifiers that, in separate circumstances, may indicate an underage drinker or an unidentified vehicle passenger who is lying about their name. The same social media platforms used by gangs, are the same ones that are used by petty thieves and college kids. And the methods used to locate and identify the suspects of violent crime, are the same ones used for investigating minor offenses. Furthermore, drugs are everywhere, and therefore, this training applies to big cities and small towns. And we will explore the types of successful and unsuccessful local practices that are available to the patrol officers and investigators who put boots on the ground.

The gang culture is becoming increasingly complex, and the so called “senseless violence” that it yields, is anything but senseless. A great quote once accurately referenced that “senseless violence” is the output of a street philosophy that not only makes sense to those involved, but needs to be understood by the law enforcement professionals who have the responsibility to detect and deter it. It is important for law enforcement to understand the gang mentality as it exists here, in New England, in order to successfully recognize the indicators of armed persons, deception, and/or gang related behavior. And it is equally important for law enforcement to recognize the factors that attracted that youth who gets pulled into this world, in order to have better interactions with them, avoid unnecessary citizen’s complaints, and to be able to reach the ultimate goal of safety for the police, the youth, the citizens, and the community. Similar to the heroin epidemic which plagues all of our communities in New England, the gang life is a systematic recruitment of the youth; and it can be, in many cases, far more physically and mentally appealing or incarcerating for them, than any fear of jail.

The New England Gang School is a classroom environment of highly experienced and decorated instructors, that will discuss the methods and tools that have helped successful law enforcement officers address the street violence, shootings, homicides, and systematic criminal behavior that gangs can be suspected of, or even victimized by themselves. That said, this is not a tactics course. We do not discuss “shoot or don’t shoot,” nor can we predict the required responses for the multitude of dangerous situations that you may or may not encounter in the performance of your duties. Our goal however, is to introduce the reality of our local gangs to you, and to help guide you through the kinds of observations and skills that will allow you to responsibly, safely, fairly, and successfully, professionalize your cases and hone your detection skills.

Our commitment is to fully provide the training promised; training that is professional, local, and current. We aim to provide updated information here. We will not review unnecessary “shock” videos that do not represent the makeup of your New England cities. And although there is great purpose in knowing the national trends, we will not be over-reviewing shooting incidents or gang initiations from Los Angeles, or unrelated trends from the past. In contrast, here, we hope to all learn with specific purpose, and with specific training value. You will receive current insight into how cases are actually made; and how you can immediately apply these techniques or ideas into your patrol, and/or your investigations.

Thank you for your interest in our training. Our hope is to provide you with the exact training that you have been looking for since the first time you ever took an in-service, or paid for a class.

Fair treatment, good practices, honest testimony, patience, hard work, good ideas, and a keen eye. If these qualities describe the kind of law enforcement officer you are, or wish to be, then collectively, we welcome you to the New England Gang School.

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About This Site

The New England Gang School’s Premier 5-day “Street Crimes and Gang Investigator School,” 2-day “Characteristics of Armed Suspects” course, and 1-day “Social Media” course, focus on the types of observations, methods, and ideas that have led to progressive enforcement in the investigation of gangs, firearms, and violent street crimes.

The fair treatment of all, and an adherence to the 4th Amd should be an essential focus of any professional training.